


Run Away With Me

by WoorEnergy (orphan_account)



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anxiety, Break Up, Cheating, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Maria protection squad, Multi, Nonbinary Marquis de Lafayette, Slow Burn, Tags May Change, Trans James Madison, Trans John Laurens, and adrienne is kicking asses, and sorry about english mistakes, sorry about that, thomas is being a dick
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-06-12 15:39:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15343008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/WoorEnergy
Summary: Things change all the time, and nothing stays the same. We choose to take a path or another for our own good. At least that was the lesson Eliza kept in mind when she learned the adventure Alexander had with Maria Lewis for weeks. They both had to move on from now.However, she never thought that Maria would become such an important part of her life.





	1. 1 - Burn Bright

**Author's Note:**

> So, yeah,,, I had this idea of fanfiction for a while, now. It's my first fanfiction with chapters in English, aND NO I'M NOT NERVOUS, YOU ARE
> 
> Enjoy, and please leave a comment if you liked it !

She couldn't believe it.

Not him.

Not here.

Not after what all they had together.

Eliza packed her last things in her bag as she let out a shaky sigh. She felt some tears forcing their way to the corner of her eyes, but she just refused to cry now. She had to stay strong until she left this place. That wasn't their first argument, though. Like every other couples, they had their problems, they talked, and everything was resolved- at least for the most part. But this time was different, and it'll be the last argument they'll ever have.

Eliza knew he was like any other man ; making mistakes, having plenty of faults... and she was willing to accept him like that, at least she tried her best. Love was also a story of compromise, acceptance and communication. But this event made him worse than the others, and she couldn't handle it anymore.

As the young Schuyler finally gathered all her stuff, she heard someone clearing their throat behind her. Taking a quick look above her shoulder, she hadn't been surprised to see Alex at the door. He was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed and motionless, staring straight at her. It seemed like he didn't care about the whole situation, but his eyes were betraying him. He wore a pitiful, guilty look without apologizing out loud. But he was, he really was sorry : he would never had admit a single thing, otherwise. Eliza knew him, now.

Well, she thought she did before all of this happened.

"Do you need my help ?"

"I don't want to have anything from you, even your help." She coldly responded, swinging her bag on her right shoulder, ready to leave. "Don't expect me to be friendly with you for at least the next few weeks."

"That's understandable."

This side of Alexander was unusual for Eliza to see ; he looked so vulnerable, so small, so loss of words, and this impression was enhanced by his body. He was a bit bent, especially his back and his shoulders, and he started to play with his fingers, not daring to give a single glance at his ex-girlfriend anymore.  
It was so strange... He usually was the man standing up for what he believed in, the loudmouth and obnoxious friend, the workaholic colleague, the lovely and dedicated boyfriend. If Eliza listened to the part of her brain that still loved Hamilton, she would have jumped in his arms, crying, telling how much she felt horrible to have been mad at him.

Stupid, useless brain. She was right, and she knew it.

"Did you take all your stuff ?"

"Yes." Eliza tried to go out of their bedroom- the bedroom, but the Caribbean didn't move from the door. It got on her nerves quickly, and frowning, she clenched her fist for a second. "Get out of my way."

"What should I do for you to forgive me ?"

"I don't know, what should I do for you to let me leave ?"

Alexander seemed taken aback by her answer and looked down. "I don't want this to be over." He firstly initiated a slow move to grab her hand, but suddenly remembered she would've strangled him if he even tried to get close to her. "I know we can still save our relationship... You don't have to end it like this !"

"Oh, so this is _my_ fault now ?" Eliza shoved Alex from her way and started pacing in the corridor, still clenching her fist like she was about to punch Hamilton right in the face. If she could, she'd have burn his whole apartment instead. "I'm not the one who cheated on you for weeks !"

"Eliza, please-"

"Let me finish ! I'm not the one who brought this girl in the bed _we_ shared to do what you've done ! I'm not the one who told everyone about your little adventure ! Now all of our friends know the whole situation ! Was that really necessary !? You're always oversharing, but I never thought you'd do something like THAT !"

She tried to calm down and brievly- but loudly sighed as she roughly ran a hand through her hair.

After cheating on her for weeks, Alexander felt guilty and sent a long text on their group chat, telling the entire story to everyone, including Eliza. The word spread as fast as she could have ever imagined- especially when Lee and Jefferson heard the whole thing-, and now friends, families and half of the school knew about this big mistake.  
The young Schuyler would've laughed in any other context ; the text was ridiculously long and dramatic for what Hamilton had to confess ; that was him, a pure drama queen.

But this situation in particular was far from funny for her, and that's exactly why she bursted into his apartment and gathered her stuff. She didn't want to stay here anymore ; it would be the last time Alex would make fun of her, thinking she's some kind of idiot, and it would be the last time he would take advantage of the poor Maria- hopefully.

"You say we don't have to end this, but you made everything you could to ruin what we had." She finally added, her voice laced with sorrow.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry Eliza !" To her surprise, Alexander fell onto his knees, as some tears started to form at the corners of his eyes. "I know I can't take back what I've done, but I can change ! I can be better for you ! I was about to tell Maria that this relationship is over !"

"What, you planned to break two hearts in one day ? I knew you were awful, but you exceed my expectations." Eliza finally look at the sobbing Hamilton without even kneel down at his level. She was trying to stay emotionless, but her bottom lips shaking was equivocal of her current state. "Do me a favor, Alexander, and keep in mind that everything's over between us. You loose, okay ? There's nothing else to save now, and that's only your fault."

Before the young man could even answer, she walked down the corridor and left the apartment, slamming the entrance door as hard as she could. She tangled her feet several times on her way, especially in the stairs, but fortunately, she managed to stay in one piece and went out of the building.  
Barely taking a step outside, she felt something wet tickling her cheek ; a tear, rolling to her chin and dropping on one of her shoes. Of course she would cry at one point ! She's been holding back everything for what seemed an eternity to her.

Even if her body started to shake violently, Eliza hardly grabbed her phone buried in her pocket and called Angelica before bringing it close to her ear. Her fingers were clenching around it so strongly that she swore to God she would've been able to break it.

"Eliza ? Are you okay ?" Her sister's voice, so soft and comforting, made the corner of her mouth twitch for a second.

"Angie, I- I can't get back home by m-myself... Can you- Can you pick me up ? Please..." Eliza cursed herself for stuttering and sobbing so loudly ; she sounded probably like an mess, but the person at the other side of the line couldn't care less.

"Are you still at Alex's house ?" The younger made a small noise of confirmation. "Alright. Stay here, I'm gonna bring you back home soon."

Eliza nodded, even though her sister couldn't see her, and she hung up.  
She was at twenty minutes from her home if she walked, but she just couldn't. Her legs were weak, and she needed Angelica's presence right now. The elder was full of good advices, and she always had the right words to comfort someone.

About five minutes later, the sobbing girl sitting on the sidewalk saw a car stopping near her, and the door opened. Angelica just made a simple gesture with her hand, encouraging her younger sister to come inside- which she did. She threw herself in the seat, and then her bag at her feet.

Angelica took a worried glance at her. "Do you wanna talk ?"

Eliza just put her head on her shoulder as only response, sniffing from time to time. Angelica got the message ; she gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders and stroke her long hair. She knew it would always calm her, and again, she did right ; Eliza managed to stop after some long and reassuring minutes of cuddling each other.

"I'm sorry." She spoke, her voice barely above a whisper, as her fingers started to play with the bottom of her shirt.

"Sorry for what ? Feeling sad after a heartbreak ? Take all the time you need until you feel better, nobody will be mad at you."

The youngest shyly nodded and buckled herself up. Angie finally could start to drive, turning the radio on by reflex.

Neither of them spoke during the short ride, the silence only broken by the music ; Eliza just wanted to be at home, and Angelica was, for the first time, loss of words. She knew Alexander could do some stupid things even though he was a really smart guy, but that ? Making her sister suffer just for another girl he'll probably never see again ? She couldn't accept it. He was so lucky she wanted to take care of Eliza right now.

*For God's sake, I did have a crush on this asshole before.* She thought, biting her bottom lip. *What a shame.*

Eliza was absently looking throught her window, not really paying attention to the radio playing some old music.  
The city was busy and crowded today- it was New York, after all, but all the noises almost rocked Eliza who closed her eyes for a moment to focus on thoses sounds. Well, it was brief until they went back to their house.

Angelica parked in front of their residence and left the car -so did Eliza, catching her bag and walking to the front door.

"John is here too, by the way," suddenly remembered Angelica as soon as she put her hand on the doorknob, "do you want him to leave ?"

"Of course not, he's a sweetheart. He can come here anytime."

Eliza tried to smile to confirm her last words, but her face showed something more like a grimace. Her elder just sigh, shaking her head, and entered the house.

An awful silence reigned in the huge place, except perhaps for two voices whispering in the livingroom. Eliza randomly noticed that she hated silence more than anything.

The two sisters made their ways to the couch were John and Peggy were sitting. The freckled man was politely installed at the edge, leaning against the couch's back, as Peggy looked like she collapsed onto the pillows and didn't move yet. Her legs spread on it and across John's knees, and her arms crossed against her chest showed her nonchalant attitude, almost lazy.

When the two of them saw Eliza, they immediately stopped their conversation- even though it seemed kinda interesting-, and Peggy stood up from the couch, almost kicking John in the stomach with her foot by accident. She ran to her sister and jumped at her, wrapping her arms around her neck. Angelica apologized to the young man, leaving her keys on the coffee table.

"Liz, I'm so sorry !" Peggy whined in her most pitched voice. "I heard the whole story, and-"

"Please, Peggy, I'm not in the mood to be touched right now."

Peggy slowly walked back as she raised her hands, like her sister was threatening her.

Eliza loved Peggy with all her heart, it was her sister ; but you know, she had this habit to touch everyone, and it was getting on her nerves sometimes- especially when she was in a bad mood, like today. Hugs and cuddles were especially her two favorite things to do to people.

"Right, yeah, sorry. I just wanted to cheer you up."

"And that's really sweet of you, but not like that."

Peggy nodded, chewing her inner cheek, and disappeared into the kitchen to make some tea for everyone- she didn't even need to say it, it was so obvious to her family now.  
Eliza took place in the couch next to John, and Angelica sitted in the armchair in front of them. The only thing separating them was a little coffee table where Eliza carelessely threw her bag earlier.

"I'm sorry, Eliza." John sighed. Eliza noticed a bit of guiltiness and regret in his voice. "I knew how Alex could behave sometimes, I should have warned you."

"No, no, I don't care anymore. Actually, let's stop talking about this, okay ? I just want to spend time with you guys without involving Alexander in any way."

The young woman lightly bit her tongue as soon as the words left her mouth, already regretting her harsh tone towards her best friend. But Laurens didn't seem to mind and just nodded, as an awkward smile appeared on his face. Angelica said nothing, her eyes glued on the window to her left. However, she was fully paying attention to the conversation.

Peggy quickly came back in the livingroom, holding a tray with four tiny cups of tea ; she gave one to each person in the room and the last take a seat between John and Eliza. Well, she basically threw herself onto the couch before grabbing her drink, adding a sugar in it.

"Peggy," John whispered after taking a sip and putting a hand on her shoulder, "I swear to God that your teas are the only thing I'm gonna drink for the rest of my life."

"Thanks, pretty boy !" She happily laughed. "Since I'm working to the café, Adrienne gave me some tips to improve ! She's so patient with me !"

"Adrienne, huh ?" Angelica teased, wiggling her eyebrows with a knowing grin. Eliza couldn't help but chuckle as well. "How's it going between you two ?"

"Pssh, be gone ! I'll tell you when she'll kiss me on the cheek !"

Angelica snorted when she saw her younger sister sticking out her tongue at her, so did she.

Slowly, the tensions in the room vanished and they all started to talk about this and that, even Eliza. She almost forgot what happened today for a minute, but the only mention of Alexander's name in a random topic made her heart twitch a little.

"...And that's how Herc beat the shit out of this dude !" John exclaimed, making wide gesture. Peggy dodged his hand that almost hit her in the nose. "He was, like, super angry and all ! I've never see him like this ! " _Don't you dare talk to him like this again, or I'll kill you, you sick fuck !_ " Well, he scared me a little at first, but he defended me against this transphobic ass, after all."

"Yeah, and Hercules hates this kind of behavior. Who can blame him ?" Eliza added.

"Exactly, sis." John suddenly stretched and yawned a bit. "About that, is someone willing to go outside with me ? I planned to hang out with Laf and Herc this afternoon, but we can go earlier to eat something first."

"Oh, yes ! It's been a while since I saw my Laffy !"

"Great, we'll listen to all your gossips." Angelica chuckled as Peggy gave her a little hit in the arm. "You okay with that, Eliza ?"

"Why not ? That would be great."

"Okay, let's go."

All of them grabbed what they had to bring with them in a couple of minutes ; Peggy and John were already outside, waiting for Angelica to find her keys she misplaced when she arrived. Eliza started to search them with her.

"Funny, I'm usually the one who looses my stuff." She snorted.

"I know, right ? I thought I'd left them on the coffee table, next to your bag..." As Angelica sat on her knees and looked under the furniture, putting her hand on it, she sighed silently. "Eliza, I know it's rushing the things a bit, but... I think you should talk to Maria as soon as possible."

A deafening silence suddenly echoed in the livingroom, only broken by John and Peggy's excited voices, and the city's muffled noises outside.

"W-Why ?" Eliza finally managed to stutter, astonished by her sister's request.

"Because I know Maria- well, more or less. She's a wonderful girl, I don't want you to think that she stole Alexander from you or something. I know you're better than that, but it would be great for both of you to have a little conversation about what happened. It's just an advice though, I'm not forcing you to do anything you don't want."

Angelica let out a nervous cough and slipped her hand under the couch. "Ah-ah, there they are !" She grabbed her previously-lost keys and gloriously waved them in the air, like a prize she won. "They were under the couch this whole time ! I think they fell down when you put your bag on the coffee table. Can you believe it ?"

"Hm, good." Eliza absently nodded. "We should go now, Peggy and John are waiting for us."

Angelica frowned, but added nothing else. She followed her sister to the front door, and locked it when she joined the loud duo.

"Are you guys ready to go ?" When everybody answered positively, John pointed his finger at Peggy. "And no, you _can't_ drive my car, stop insisting."

"Oh, come on ! It's just for a short ride, and I'll be super-duper careful !"

"Careful ? You mean like this time when you almost hit this poor grandma ?" Angelica snorted.

"She was crossing the road at the last second !"

"She was still on the GODDAMN SIDEWALK. So I'll be the one driving today."

Peggy mumbled a low "not fair", but handed John's keys to him anyway. Thus, the group climbed into the little vehicle and left the Schuyler's house.

Eliza couldn't help but notice the sky slowly turning to a deep shade of grey, and finally closed her eyes, enjoying the city's sounds.


	2. 2 - Angels Fall The Farthest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 4k fucking words istg I don't even know how I did this  
> Enjoy, and leave a comment if you liked it ! (Or even if you didn't) (I take constructive criticism)

Eliza never expected things to be so much different now. Well, she knew nothing would be the same after the break up, but everything changed so fast, and she wasn't ready for that yet. Neither of them was.

It had been around two weeks since she ended her relationship with Alexander. Now, the man was sitting at the other side of the classroom in every class they shared, avoiding her on purpose, especially at lunch time. Who could blame him ? They weren't gonna sit next to each other and talk like nothing happened. Even if they didn't interact, it would've been way too awkward to be physically close.  
Still, the sight of Hamilton sharing a desk with none other than Jefferson for two hours straight was almost funny for Eliza if she forgot the whole context. But she just couldn't, and everytime she landed her eyes on him, she just felt a heavy knock in her stomach and quickly looked away. Everything was over- she said it herself, and she meant it, their relationship was just a memory by now. She just started to miss him, somehow ; she was one of the first friend he made when he firstly came in New York, and she kept some kind of affection towards him. She'll forgive him, sooner or later, and deep inside she wanted to.  
But oh man, he'll have to listen to her for hours before she even dares thinking about any kind of forgiveness.

As the bell rang in the entire school, the students started to gather their things and leave the class ; Eliza noticed, as the empty seat next to Aaron, that Alexander had already disappeared in the corridor. She brievely shook her head and just grabbed her bag, swinging it on her shoulder.

"Miss Schuyler ? Can I talk to you for a moment ?"

The woman turned around and looked up to see Washington, her main teacher. He kept a straight and proud posture as usual, his hands hidden behind his back and his chest sticked out, but he seemed to lightly chewing his inner cheek as he frowned a bit.

"Of course, sir. What do you want to talk about ?"

"Hold on, I want the other students to leave before."

Eliza tilted her head for a second but didn't argue. She couldn't remember to have made any mistake that required Washington to reprimand her that badly. She always have been a good and calm student, especially with this teacher.

Finally, they've been both left alone in the classroom. George sat down in his own chair and nervously played with the corner of a paper on his desk. He didn't even dare to look at her.

"Sir, are you alright ? You seem..." Eliza paused and looked at him, humming as she carefully tried to find the right word. "Um...distracted ?"

"I'm just worried. I didn't call you because you made something wrong, be relieved." She released a breathe that she didn't even realize she was holding. The teacher didn't made any comment about that. "No, it's about Alexander. Don't you think that he had a weird behavior, recently ?"

Eliza's eyes widened a little, and she felt a sudden pound in her heart. Did the rumor spread that much in the school ? He just couldn't know, especially since he hated gossips. And even if he knew anything, he'd have told her instead of beating around the bush. "Um, I'm not quite sure of what you're talking about. Could you be more specific ?"

"Well, it seems to me that Alexander is the one who's getting distracted since last week. Don't get me wrong, he's a brilliant student and still has some of the best grades in the school, but he looks more and more depressed." Washington paused to be sure if his student was still following his train of thoughts. "Elizabeth, you know how much I care about him. He's like a son to me."

"I know, sir."

"That's why I called you. You're his girlfriend, so I'm sure you have an idea about what's bothering him, right ? Do you think is there anything we can do for him ?" Eliza coughed nervously. So he didn't know yet. "The only time I tried to ask him, he just avoided the topic and ran away."

"Actually... I'm not his girlfriend anymore. And I think that's why he may seems different to you."

George took a questioning glance at the young Schuyler, and invited her to continue with a nod, leaning forward. Eliza sighed, realizing that she didn't have any other choice.  
She began to explain the whole situation to him, how Alexander cheated on her, the long text he sent on the group chat, the heated argument they had right after, basically all he had to know to understand. At the end of her speech, he just let out an annoyed sigh.

"God dammit, Alexander..." he whispered, rubbing his temple with two fingers. "What am I going to do with you ?"

"Sir ? Are you okay ?"

"I'm the one who should ask you this question. I'm sorry Elizabeth, I... I never thought Alexander would ever do that to you or Miss Lewis."

"Don't be mad at him, please. He already handled a lot."

"I know... I know." Washington stood up from his chair and crossed his arms. "I'm really sorry you had to go through this. If you need to confess me something, anything, I'll listen to you. And... tell me if you can talk to Alex. I'm still concerned for him."

"Thank you sir, I'll keep all of that in mind. See you tomorrow."

"Goodbye."

Eliza waved at him and finally left the classroom, closing the door behind her ; some students were still in the corridor, chatting or going out of the classes as well. She just took the stairs and walked to the place her friends were supposed to gather at lunch, but suddenly felt her phone buzz. It was probably a text from one of them.

From Herc : _yo u coming or what_

She playfully rolled her eyes with a little smile, and started to type an answer.

To Herc : _yeah hold on, I was talking with Washington_

From Herc : _I can't wait if there's food so hurry up_

Eliza groaned and buried her phone back in her sweat's pocket ; she quickly made her way to the crowded and loud cafeteria where everyone was waiting for her- that is to say Angelica, John, Hercules and Lafayette.  
She noticed the empty seat next to the Irish man and frowned. It was usually Alexander's seat, but since he avoided her, he didn't hang out anymore with the guys as well. A feeling of guiltiness suddenly invaded her. Maybe she should stop seeing them ? It wasn't fair for him, after all ; he became their friend a while before he and Eliza even met.

"There you are, Eliza." Lafayette said with a tired grin.

"Hi Laf ! Pronouns today ?"

"He and him, thank you."

Eliza nodded and took Alexander's seat, shaking her hand with Hercules. Angelica was looking at her phone, probably scrolling through Instagram, and she evasively waved at her. They already saw each other this morning anyway.

"Good thing you finally came, Hercules was starving !" The freckled man snorted.

"Wait, so you guys actually waited for me ? How cute."

"Yup, and now that you're here, we can EAT !" The poor guy grabbed his sandwich and just bit in it carelessely. Eliza rolled her eyes for the second time today and pulled out a box full of cookies from her bag before placing it at the center of the table, knowing that John would be fast to grab one and stuff it in his mouth. She was right, and the freckled one hummed at the sweet taste of the biscuit touching his palate. The other Schuyler absently buried her hand in her chips' bag from time to time before typing again on her phone.

The only one who didn't begin to eat was Lafayette, staring at an invisible spot on the wall next to him. His fingers played with one of the lock that escaped his messy bun and winded it around his index, while he bit his bottom lip. It was rare to see him so distracted ; he was usually the one lighting up the mood by making silly jokes and complimenting everyone on their clothes or haircuts. Eliza didn't miss to notice it.

"Hey Laf, are you okay ?" No response, she touched his arm. "Lafayette ?"

"Hein ?" He quickly rubbed his head with the palm of his hand. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about... things, and all. Don't worry about me."

Hercules and John exchanged a glance and frowned, not convinced at all by this strange answer. But they didn't say anything, and the Irish man gently patted his friend's shoulder instead. The French smiled at him, thankful for his understanding.

"Yo guys, apparently George King doesn't work here anymore." Angelica said, all of sudden. It surprised everyone who looked back at her with curiosity painted on their faces.

"Yeah, I heard the news," John admitted, "and I couldn't be more relieved about that."

"I know right ? He was an asshole and hated all of us !" Hercules complained.

"And I'm pretty sure he was a racist little bitch."

"Obviously." Angelica grabbed her thermos bottle full of tea and took a sip.

The group started to talk about different things during the next minutes, loud as usual, until Eliza payed attention to something else in the cafeteria. _Someone_ else. It was a girl, rather small- perhaps a bit taller than her. Messing with the bottom of her shirt, she looked confusely around her, eyebrows frowned. Her brown curls were bouncing around her face everytime she turned her head, as well for her long, red skirt swinging around her legs. She finally stopped on Eliza's face, and let out a quiet sigh.

After some time of wondering "who the hell is this person and why am I even looking at her like a creep", Eliza finally recognized Maria Lewis. She had seen her from time to time at school, but they'd never talked before. She didn't even know if she had herself someone in her life beside her adventure with Alexander, but she supposed it was none of her business.

"Angie," Eliza whispered, leaning against her sister as the other part of the squad wasn't paying attention to them, "is that really Maria over there ?"

"Hm ? Oh, yes. She asked me where to find you, so I told her to join us at the cafeteria today."

"Why me ?" But before the elder could even answer, Maria shyly approached the small group. Eliza was wrong, for once ; it seemed that this girl was smaller than her. She cleared her throat for a second.

"Elizabeth Schuyler ?" All the people at the table stopped their conversation to look at her, and her cheeks turned into a deeper shade of brown. Eliza noticed it amongst all the beautiful elements of her face ; no wonder why Alexander used to spend most of his nights with this girl, she was incredibly cute. "Um, I-I'm sorry, should I leave ?"

"No, absolutely not. How can I help you ?"

"I wanted to talk to you... And by that, I mean just the two of us. Is that okay for you ?"

Eliza took a quick glance at her friends, and then shrugged, trying to look relaxed. "Sure. Let's go out of the cafeteria for a bit, alright ?"

Maria nodded ; as the youngest Schuyler stood up from her seat, she leaded the other girl outside and just stayed near the entrance. It wasn't as loud as the inside, but some people still passed nearby.

"Okay, I guess you wanna talk about what happened with Alexander ?"

"I just wanted you to hear my point of view."

Eliza tilted her head, confused. "What do you mean ?"

"Well, you're probably thinking that I'm this kind of girl to steal boyfriends to make the others suffer... But I'm not like that, I promise !" Maria quickly wiped away the tear at the corner of her eye. "I was just so desperate, and alone, and- and Alexander was there, and he wanted to make me feel better, so we went to his apartment..."

Maria started to panick, talking faster and faster, and being less and less coherent. It seemed that she had to let out everything as soon as she could, or else Eliza would've jumped at her throat to strangle her. But obviously, she would never do such a thing.

"Hey," She hesitantly interrupted her before gently grabbing her hand. "It's okay, take a deep breathe."

Maria's eyes widened a bit at the contact, but she closed them and did what Eliza told her. She slowly inhaled, and released her breathe through her trembling lips.  
The young Schuyler couldn't be mad at her, even if she tried. She looked so lost and guilty, and it didn't seem to her that she was full of bad intentions. On the contrary. Maybe it was foolish since she knew nothing about her, but she had this feeling that she could trust her no matter what.

"Look, Maria, you sound like a good person to me, and I didn't plan to hate you anyway."

"You should," she admitted, looking down, "I'm awful."

"I don't think so. Actually, we could finish this conversation later if you want to ? You don't seem to be able to talk about it, but maybe we could text each other to figure everything out ?"

Maria didn't hide her surprise when the words reached her ears, and she just nodded as she started to play with her hair.

"Good ! Give me your number, I'll make sure to text you in the evening."

So the girl did it, saying the numbers out loud and staring nervously at the thin fingers typing them on the phone's screen.

"Thank you. As you surely noticed... I'm not very good at actually talking to people."

"I don't mind, really ! We can't be good at everything." Eliza took a glance in the cafeteria, through the window, seeing her friends talking- probably loudly, as usual. "Now that I think about it, we should get to know each other more. Do you wanna join the group for the rest of the lunch ?"

"Oh... I'd rather not, I'll be a burden for all of you."

"Are you sure ? I swear you're not a burden for anyone here !" Maria just let out a sad chuckle at this. "I won't force you, though. So... See you tonight ?" Eliza offered her hand at the other girl. She stared at it for a moment, like she was wondering what Eliza wanted, and then shook it lightly with a little smile at the corner of her mouth. Maria's hand was warm and comforting against hers.

"Thank you so much, Elizabeth. You're such an angel."

"Pfft, what ? I'm not !"

Maria shooked her head and exchanged a last glance with her, waving her hand, before starting to walk away. Eliza couldn't help but look at her new friend, then she went back inside the establishment.  
She almost regretted the peaceful conversation with this nervous girl when she heard the cheerful crowd's voices again. She reached the table and sitted in her chair.

"You took your sweet time," Hercules groaned, "what took you so long with Maria ?"

"Oh, nothing important. What were you guys yelling about ?"

"I was talking about my turtle and you basically missed all the cool stuff about her !"

"I repeat myself, but Balthazar is a dumb name for a turtle." Lafayette said, shooking his head disapprovingly. "Do you know how much people on Earth have the same name and would love to change it ?"

"I like this name." Angelica shrugged. "It has something special."

"I'd rather not to talk about it." the Irish added as he rolled his eyes, taking the last cookie in the box and biting in it.

Eliza just chuckled at their friends' "argument". She was about to mention this particular encounter with Maria, but she thought that they looked way too happy to break the mood- especially Lafayette who seemed to feel a lot better now.

She'll just have to wait until the end of the classes.

* * *

 

Eliza's classes ended pretty quickly, and she was on her way for home. Angelica was walking next to her, humming some song she listened in the morning.

"Could you, like, sing something else ? I like your voice, but it's pretty annoying to hear the same thing over and over."

"It's stuck in my head, so bear with me."

The younger groaned, but the corner of her mouth twitched for a moment. Looking up, she could see her house not far away from her.

"So, how was it ?" Angelica asked out of nowhere.

"Huh ? What are you talking about ?"

"Don't be silly ! How went the conversation with Maria ?"

"Oh ! Well," she paused for a second, "she seems to be a great person. Really anxious, though. She gave me her number so we can talk more about... you know."

"Yeah, I see." Angelica smiled and tenderly rubbed her sister's back. "I'm proud of you. I knew you'd be above Alexander's behavior, but I'm glad that you and Maria are actually interacting."

"Pfft, that's dumb. Anyway, we're home."

The two girls entered the house, leading to the livingroom where they threw their bags away. Peggy joined them in her pajamas, a cup of tea in her hands. "Hey girls !"

"Looks like someone's working really hard here." Angelica snorted.

"Hey ! I worked all the morning, and Adrienne wasn't even here to help me ! I had to do most of her work with Sammy !"

"I know, don't worry, I'm just teasing you."

Peggy sticked her tongue out and left the room to grab a snack. Eliza had already collapsed onto the couch as she typed something on her phone with a focused expression.

"Are you writing to Maria ?" Eliza just gave her a nod. "Alright. Don't forget to give me the news, yeah ?"

The young woman smiled at her and hesitantly sent her first message to Maria. She has been pretty fast to answer.

To Maria : _hey this is Eliza, you okay ?_

From Maria : _Hello Elizabeth, I'm doing good, thank you. Wasn't your day too tiring ?_

To Maria : _ughh the usual yknow, but I'll survive_

_anyway ready to talk ?_

For Maria : _Of course. Can I finish what I started to explain at lunch time ?_

To Maria : _sure go ahead_

The answer had been slower to come to Eliza, surely because her friend had a lot to confess. Anyway, she got time to grab something to drink before her phone buzzed again. And looking through the new text, she realized that Alexander wasn't the only one to talk and write too much.

From Maria : _As I said, I met Alexander on a bad day. I had some personal problems, and to make things shorter and easier for you, I was feeling so down and unloved that I basically jumped in his arms. He was so kind, so patient with me, he listened to my rambling all night, he offered me a drink... I couldn't resist him, he made me feel like I was special to him. That's something I hardly felt before. Our relationship lasted several weeks before he decided to end it up, all of sudden. That's when he told me he already had a girlfriend, and that you broke up with him. I swear to you I didn't know that ! He never mentioned you before ! If he did, I'd have leave him as soon as I knew, I promise !_

Eliza didn't know what to answer as she read the last text over and over. Her fingers made little motions above her screen, typing the beginning of a word and then quickly deleting it, thinking that "I just can't send this" or "that's stupid, she already knows that". She stayed at least five minutes like this before finding something good to send.

To Maria : _I'm sorry you had to stand all of this, you didn't deserve it. You mentionned something that bothered you the day you met Alexander, wanna talk about it ?_

From Maria : _I'd rather not. It's not really pretty to hear._

_You're not mad at me, right ?_

Eliza cocked an eyebrow as she wrote an answer as fast as she could.

To Maria : _no way !! it was Alex's responsability to tell you he already had a girlfriend. and idk for you, but it sounds to me that he took advantage of you_

From Maria : _Please don't say that, he helped me. Even if his actions are unacceptable, he's the only support I had for weeks._

To Maria : _he helped you to make you smile or to drag you in his bed ??_

_Maria, I barely know you but I know Alexander, I can tell that your relationship with him was far from wholesome_

But Maria's answer never came to her. She guessed she didn't want to respond, or was just busy with something else.  
The girl turned off her phone which she slided in her pocket and, grabbing her empty glass, went to the kitchen and cleaned it. Her sisters entered right after, talking loudly- well at least for Peggy. She's always been a loudmouth, but Hercules had a particular influence on her.

"Sammy was absolutely mad, sis ! He was yelling at Charles and all, telling that he didn't have to interrupt him while he was working !" She finally saw Eliza and smiled. "Yo Liz."

"Sammy deserves better than this arrogant piece of shit anyway."

"I know right ! I don't even know why he has a crush on him ! Charles didn't want to leave and was insisting, so I caught him and kicked his sorry ass out of the café. Literally."

"Peg, are you aware that this guy is, like, super tall and strong ?" Eliza snorted. "Imagine if he had decided to fight back !"

"Pfft ! Charles Lee, fighting ? He's a coward, and I can fight too ! Anyway, Sammy started to cry after that, so I had to comfort him."

"Poor boy." Angelica said, shooking her head.

The conversation continued on different topics as the sisters cooked their meal and moved to the livingroom to eat ; sure, they had a room to eat properly on a table, but who needed that in 2018 when you could do it while watching TV ? And the couch was way more comfy.  
Eliza didn't pay attention to the show playing, or her sisters' voices, or even her plate. Actually, she was too focused on the conversation she had with Maria. She didn't know exactly why, but something with this girl was bothering her. She seemed to keep a lot of things for her, and it was intriguing for the young woman who wanted to know more about her situation.  
She suddenly came back to reality when Peggy waved her hand in her field of view and snapped her fingers.

"Heyyy, Earth to Liz ! You okay ?"

"Um, yeah... yeah, sorry."

"You seem concerned." Angelica put a hand on her shoulder. "Is there something you'd like to share with us ?"

Eliza took a glance at her elder- how would she know that something was on her mind ?- and sighed.

"I'm... worried for Maria."

"Did you actually talk to her !?" Peggy gasped.

"Yeah, we texted each other when I came back from school. She seems to have a lot of problems, but she doesn't want to open up to me."

"She must have her own reasons for that. Besides," Angie poked her nose, "you two barely know each other. It's obvious she doesn't trust you enough to talk about her struggles. You'd do the same, so give her some time."

"Yeah... I guess you're right."

"Come on, try to cheer up a little and think about something else."

"Angie is right ! You deserve a break from all of this !"

Angelica gave her a little hit with her elbow and went back to her plate, paying attention to the television in front of her. Eliza watched her pasta, shyly playing with it with her fork.

She wondered for a moment how Alexander handled the recent events.


	3. 3 - So Far So Good

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me longer to write this chapter,,,, I wasn't inspired at all, but here we are I guess
> 
> Leave a comment if you liked it ! Support really gives me motivation to write more

One week later, Eliza and Maria still talked and exchanged messages, and also started to hang out in the school. Their interactions were quick sometimes, and ended up abruptly without any explanations, but the Schuyler sister enjoyed those rare moments where they joked and shared things together. She still felt that her friend was hiding a lot from her, but she still kept in mind what Angelica said ; they didn't know each other that much, and if Maria wanted to confess, she'll do it on her own. No pressure, just time and patience.  
  
Today, Eliza was leaving the school, joined by Aaron and Theodosia at her sides. They were walking downstairs as they went outside the establishment, the young Schuyler talking about how loud Jefferson and Lee could be. Well, basically all of her friends were loudmouths (despite the affection she had for each of them), that's why she enjoyed staying with the couple from time to time ; they were serene and knew how to control their voices' volume.  
  
She never understood why Angelica despised Aaron. Well, maybe she didn't know him like her elder did, but he always has been a lovely, sweet boy with her. Oh maybe she kept an eye on him since he tried to flirt with her, who knew ?  
  
"I thought Madison was about to slap Jefferson, even more than Alex." Eliza snorted. "You see, there's this face he makes when he looks calm, but he already killed you in his head."  
  
"Can relate." Aaron grinned as he wrapped an arm around Theodosia's shoulders.  
  
"What was this debate about anyway ?"  
  
"I don't quite remember to be honest, I was busy writing at that moment," she admitted, "but I think it was about immigration, or something like that ?"  
  
"Oh, we know where Jefferson stands on that point." Theodosia sighed. "And since Alex is an immigrant..."  
  
Eliza sadly hummed in agreement, nodding her head. She kinda liked Thomas, he could be funny when he wanted to, but some of his ideas bothered her, and sometimes, she'd have gladly punched him in the jaw to teach him how to keep his mouth shut. Too bad, he was pretty good-looking, but he consciously wasted this.  
  
She buried her hands in her dress' pockets as a light breeze blew through her long hair. Summer was close, and she enjoyed a bit of fresh air against her skin.  
  
"Oh, and," Burr's girlfriend apologized, "I'm sorry, but we won't be there Saturday at the café."  
  
Eliza made a noise of disappointment, watching them with an upset look. She and Peggy planned to invite some of their friends to drink something at the café and just hang out together, but for now, Lafayette, Hercules, Thomas and James were the only ones able to come- Peggy and Samuel were supposed to be here too, but they were still working, so they didn't have a lot of time to talk. Especially Samuel, who took this job as seriously as possible.  
  
She wondered if Alexander will be there, too. Not that she minded his presence- well, it'd be awkward, but she didn't feel like blow off steam on him anymore. She guessed she began to move on somehow, and it was the better thing to do now.  
  
"Angie and John are busy as well... Man, that sucks !"  
  
"We're sorry Eliza," Aaron said, biting his bottom lip, "but Theo and I have some... family problems to handle in emergency, and we need to be free for the whole weekend."  
  
"Yeah, I understand." Eliza said as Theodosia softly rubbed her boyfriend's arm.  
  
Soon, Eliza said goodbye to her friends, waving at them as she soon reached her house. Angelica was still at school, in a class whose she already forgot the name. But she knew her sister, it surely was a debate class or something.  
  
Eliza opened the door, noticing the calm and the unusual silence of the place. Peggy was probably in her room, and in a few seconds, she'd eventually run downstairs and jump in her arms. And yes, Eliza was right ; but today, Peggy would do as she thought for another reason.  
  
"Liz ! Liiiz !"  
  
Eliza threw her bag at the floor and opened her arms, welcoming the happy girl. She wrapped them around her waist as she allowed herself to giggle at her sister's energy. As long as she could remember, Peggy have always been like this ; excited for anything, yelling and jumping everywhere to express her feelings. It was her, she couldn't change, even if their father tried to scold her several times when she was younger. At the end, her family accepted her like this- a bit loud, but still the Peggy they all loved.  
  
"Guess what, guess what !" Peggy exclaimed, basically bouncing on her feet.  
  
"Hold on, let me drink something first !"  
  
"Whatever, I can talk while you're drinking !"  
  
And Peggy did so, rambling all the way to the kitchen, as Eliza pretended she was annoying- but she couldn't erase this little smile on her face. She grabbed a soda can in the fridge, listening to her.  
  
"So, I met Maria when I left the café- her clothes are so pretty by the way !"  
  
"I know right ? Especially this red skirt she wore when we talked for the first time." Eliza couldn't help but smile at the memory of Maria with this long, elegant skirt. "Anyway, keep going."  
  
"Right, yeah. So, I told her who I was, we talked for a bit and then I remembered we had a meeting Saturday so I invited her !"  
  
"Did she say yes ?" Peggy suddenly looked at her and raised an eyebrow as a knowing grin appeared on her face. "I mean, what did she say ?"  
  
"She said she'll probably come to drink with us, but also that she couldn't stay too much longer."  
  
"That sounds great. Thus she'd be more comfortable if we integrate her to the group."  
  
Peggy sat at her side, on another tabouret to be closer. Then, she pointed a finger at her, chuckling.  
  
"You..." she made a pause for the drama as she tapped her sister's chest with her index, "... _totally_ have a crush on Maria !"  
  
Eliza got flustured when she heard those words, and she almost spitted her soda out. "What ? No ! Not at all ! I met her a week ago ! How would I be in love ?"  
  
"That's called love at first sight, sweetie." She sighed and leaned her head against her sister's shoulder. And there she was, the romantic Peggy. "But I can't blame you, girls are wonderful."  
  
"About that," Eliza hummed, suddenly changing the topic of the conversation, "tell me about Adrienne !"  
  
Peggy eyes' started to shine, as always when anyone mentionned her crush. She started to list all the little details about her, how clever she was, how pretty her smile was, how intimidating she was when she became angry at a customer. All those little things that made the young woman special to her, almost better than the others. And she didn't miss to talk about all their interactions today.  
  
"Girl," Eliza sighed, "what are you waiting for ? Go get her !"  
  
"No way ! She probably has a lover or something."  
  
"So what ? Just ask her on a date to be sure !"  
  
"Pfft, we'll see that. Anyway, you should start to pick up an outfit for Saturday !"  
  
"Peg, it's just a rendez-vous for a coffee." Eliza laughed. "I'm not going to an important meeting, you know ?"  
  
"Yeah, but you have to impress your soon-to-be wife !"  
  
"What ?"  
  
But before Eliza could add anything, Peggy grabbed her hand and dragged her upstairs, leading her to her room. Then, Peggy opened her closet and threw all of her sister's clothes on the bed, humming along a song she listened to in the morning and swinging her hips.  
  
"Man, what are THOSE !?" Peggy screeched without warning, pointing at a random pair of shoes. "You really need to change your standards !"  
  
"What ? I love these shoes ! They're comfy !"  
  
"Ugh, no way you're my sister. Dad surely adopted me, I'm the only one with good tastes in fashion in this family."  
  
Eliza let out a long but quiet sigh.  
  
It looked like they were going to stay her for a while...

* * *

Peggy and Eliza opened the café's front door ; only Adrienne was here for now, cleaning the counter with a wet wip. She looked up for a moment, curious, and brightly smiled when she saw the youngest sister, before going back to her work. Eliza swore she saw Peggy melting.  
  
She took a seat near from the window and put her purse on the table before scrolling through her phone to wait for the others- and also to forget how uncomfortable she was in the clothes Peggy picked for her. She wanted to wear a skirt or a dress as usual (and her closet was full of this), but her sister protested : " _It's 2018, grandma ! You don't have to wear this kind of stuff, and jeans are way better !_ ". Thus she was here, wearing clothes she didn't use since she was sixteen.  
  
Good old memories of the worst, most ungrateful period of her childhood.  
  
Jefferson and Madison has been the first ones to enter the café. Madison politely greeted the two in charge of the establishment while his friend teasingly winked at Adrienne. She just rolled her eyes and walked to the table where the boys sat in front of Eliza.  
  
"It's nice to see you, Liz." Adrienne smiled, playing with the pencil in her hand. "What will you take today ?"  
  
"Oh Adrienne, my sweet Adrienne, what about me ?" Thomas whined. "Did you forget your favorite boy ?"  
  
" _Ferme-là pauvre con._ " She hissed, clenching her fist.  
  
Eliza leaned a bit to talk to Madison. "I don't understand French, but that didn't sound nice."  
  
"Indeed." Madison snorted. Finally, they all ordered a coffee and waited for the others to arrive, chatting quietly. Peggy waved at her sister from time to time while the other customers entered the café. Eliza brievely looked at them, noticing some of her old acquaintances who she winked at. But suddenly, her eyes landed on someone she thought she'd never see today.  
  
"Hey guys !" Hercules exclaimed, joined by Alexander. "We're here ! Laffy will be a bit late, however, he met Maria on our way and stayed with her." As he greeted everyone while the Caribbean sat at the opposite of Jefferson, he leaned in, close to Eliza. "I brought Alex with me. I hope you don't mind, it's just-"  
  
"Herc, it's absolutely fine," she smiled, interrupting him in a whisper, "he's also your friend. I can't forbid him to come with you. We'll just ignore each other, okay ?"  
  
"Good. Laffy was really worried about it." The Irish man smiled back and thanked her with a hug.  
  
The two last ones were quick to enter the establishment- that is to say Lafayette, and Maria, hiding behind her tall friend. Eliza didn't miss to notice how anxious she seemed and frowned a bit. Perhaps she was just impressed to be added to a new, loud group ; that would've been understandable.  
  
"We're all here !" Lafayette shouted. Before they could even sit down, Peggy ran to them and hugged them tightly.  
  
"I was waiting for you, Laffy !" She started a question, but her eyes stopped on something hung on their shirt. A pins with three words ; he, she and they, and a little needle pointing at the neutral pronoun. She suddenly gasped. "That's amazing !"  
  
"I know right !? John gave it to me yesterday ! I'm so happy, that's exactly what I was looking for !"  
  
As they started to chat over and over, excited about anything that came to their minds, Maria took a seat between Hercules and Eliza before smiling at both of them.  
  
"It's nice to see you. All of you."  
  
"What, even Jefferson ?" Hercules snorted.  
  
"He doesn't seem to be a bad guy, is he ?"  
  
"Wait until he starts another debate with-"  
  
"See you still put sugar in your coffee, Hamilhoe." The Southern mocked.  
  
"You can go fuck yourself, Jeffershit. I'm not in the mood to bear you." Alexander hissed as he stirred his coffee with a little spoon.  
  
"Well, nevermind."  
  
Maria couldn't help but laugh, while the two started to fight louder and louder until Madison and Lafayette gently asked them to shut up. Eliza noticed that it was the first she heard Maria's laugh ; it was quiet but melodic, something she wouldn't mind to hear a bit more.  
  
Everyone had their drinks and happily chatted while Peggy joined them from time to time. Well, at least she tried ; Samuel (who came a while later) was a cool and social guy, but serious when he worked. " _We're not here to gossip, Peggy ! Go back to your work !_ " he'd shout. Adrienne noticed it and just smiled when the young Schuyler tried to crash in the group again.  
  
Eliza had a conversation with her French friend and Madison when she noticed, in the corner of her eye, Maria texting to someone. It wasn't a big deal, everyone here used their cellphones all the time, but it was surprising she didn't try to start a conversation as well. Especially with Hercules ; the two seemed to get along pretty well.  
  
"Hey, Maria," she gave her a little hit with her elbow, "who are you talking to ?"  
  
"Um... my boyfriend," she sighed after a moment of silence, "he was worried about me, so I had- I decided to text him to reassure him."  
  
"Girl, men are such babies, am I right ?"  
  
Maria just frowned in response, almost sending a death glare to her friend. "James is not a baby. He just cares about me because he loves me. You don't have to be so rude."  
  
And she went back to her phone, leaving Eliza speechless.  
  
Alex probably heard their conversation since they looked at them, eyes widened with an expression of panick painted on his face. Eliza didn't pay attention to him, though, too focused on the sudden harsh tone Maria used to talk. She wasn't the kind of girl to be agressive- at least, that wasn't the first impression she gave to the others. So, yes, Eliza was shocked, especially since it was just a harmless joke. Besides, it ususally was men who felt offended.  
Maybe she was just imagining things ? She felt tired because of the school after all, so it was possibly her fault if she saw her on the defensive.  
  
Half an hour and several cups of coffee later, someone burst through the front door. Eliza, for some reason, noticed him.  
He was a tall, muscular man- kinda similar to Hercules' stature, and it seemed that he recently shaved his head. His facial hair, however, covered his chin and ended in the middle of his cheeks. Something about this stranger disturbed Eliza.  
  
And most importantly, he walked to their table.  
  
"Maria," he spoke, drawing everyone's attention to him, "we have to leave."  
  
"Oh, what now ?" Peggy pouted- she sneaked to their table as well a couple of minutes ago. "Where are you going, Maria ?"  
  
"She's going with me, and that's none of your business."  
  
Everyone exchanged a look, not knowing what to say. Peggy stood up to show she was ready to fight, opening her mouth to shout something back, but Madison grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to her seat before she made any mistake. As Maria gathered her things and left her chair to follow the man, Hercules gently put a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Hold on, who is he and can we trust him ?"  
  
Hercules swore to God that Reynolds was willing to punch him in the face, but gathered himself before Adrienne intervenes. Everyone here knew Adrienne was the most terrifying girl in New York City, and even this stranger didn't want to draw too much attention on himself.  
  
Maria finally looked up at her friend and shook her head. "I-It's James Reynolds, my boyfriend. He's trustworthy, I promise. Now... I have to leave. Sorry."  
  
She made her way to her lover and quickly left the café while he glanced one more time at the man who tried to take Maria away from him.  
  
Hercules sat back in his seat, stunned and loss of words.  
  
"That's weird. Something's wrong with this guy." He finally spoke as his friends looked at him. His eyes were still glued on the front door where the duo disappeared.  
  
"I agree. It seemed that Maria was reluctant to follow him." Alexander said as well, speaking for once in the morning.

"Wait," Eliza realized something, "did Maria told you anything about Reynolds ?"  
  
They looked expectantly at their friend who quietly gulped for a second.  
  
"Well, she did say they had some problems together, but not something that alarmed me. I thought they were like any other couple, you know ?"  
  
"A couple ? You mean the thing you'll never know again ?"  
  
"Thomas, stop."  
  
Thomas was about to protest, but quickly shutted his mouth when he saw James' death glare.  
  
"We have to do something for her." Lafayette hummed.  
  
"Yeah, but what ? I don't think she'll listen to us !"  
  
"I..." Everyone turned towards Eliza, concern on all of their faces. Well, maybe not for Thomas, who was just curious by now. "I'll try to text her tonight. Maybe she'll be more receptive like this ?"  
  
"Alright, but don't pressure her too much, oui ? We don't want to force her to do anything."  
  
"Or to put her in danger." Hercules added.  
  
"Sure guys, don't worry."  
  
The morning ended fast and in a strange, suffocating atmosphere as everyone paid their drinks and left, lost in their own thoughts.

* * *

To Maria : _hey, how are you ? we noticed that you didn't feel very well when you left the café, and we wanted to know if you were okay_  
  
_please ?_  
  
_please answer me I'm worried for you  
  
I only need a text from you, and I'll leave you alone_  
  
From Maria : _I'm fine._  
  
But Eliza wasn't dupe. She was trying to reassure herself more than trying to get answers from Maria. Maybe she wasn't doing it right.  
As she slipped her phone back in her pocket, Angelica carefully entered her room. Emotionless and staring at the ceiling, Eliza just patted the empty place next to her, on the bed, and the elder gently sat at her side. She didn't hesitate to wrap an arm around her shoulders to show her support.  
  
"I know you're worried for Maria." She softly spoke.  
  
"If you saw how this James behaved with her ! It was so strange, so... so unwholesome ! I'm pretty sure she's in trouble with him ! And I hate the way he talked to Peggy !"  
  
"But there's nothing we can do for now. I agree with what you and Peggy said, this guy seems weird, but we can't just force Maria to run away from him until she speaks by herself about their relationship."  
  
"I know, I have to give her some time." Eliza mumbled, echoing her sister's words from a week ago.  
  
Angelica smiled sadly and ran a hand through Eliza's hair. Then, she took a look at her watch (it was around seven p.m) and let out a long sigh.  
  
"Hey, you know what ? We should totally watch a movie tonight. You, Peggy and me, just the three of us. It's some sort of apologize for this morning, yeah ?"  
  
"Can I choose the movie then ?"  
  
"Only if it's not some stupid romance comedy."  
  
Eliza snorted and gave a little hit in her sister's arm with the palm of her hand, before standing up from her bed, imitated by the elder. They ran downstairs to prepare everything for their improvised evening.

She almost forgot how defensless, how desperate Maria seemed the last time they saw each other, before she left the café with her boyfriend. Just for the night, she didn't have to worry.


	4. 4 -Nothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are, here's chapter 4~ hope you enjoy , leave a comment if you did or if you have any criticism
> 
> there's a description of a toxic relationship in the middle of this chapter. I didn't know if it could trigger people or not, so I'm warning you guys. I put trigger warnings at the beginning and end of the extract (tell me if you need a summary of this extract if you can't read it, I'll add notes at the end of this chapter)  
> Also I've never lived this kind of relationship in my life, so please, tell me if I wrote anything bad or improper about it. I'd hate to make one of you uncomfortable, so don't hesitate.

Saying that Eliza was a bit worried would have been an understatement. She was consumed by concern and uncertainty. Mostly because of James Reynolds, his strange behavior alarmed everyone, especially the young girl who felt defenseless against him. Was she overthinking ? Was she just misinterpreting anything ? All of her friends saw the exact same thing as she did, but she started to think that, perhaps, James was in a bad mood, that he wasn’t that rude and suspicious with the others.  
  
At least that's what Eliza was trying to believe until Maria stopped to answer to all of her texts, all of sudden, even though the sister literally spammed her to know if she was okay. Her suspicions grew bigger and bigger for the next two weeks- especially when she noticed how she avoided her at school, how fast she walked when they were on the same path, how tired she seemed. And Eliza didn’t want to force her to talk, really, but she felt so worried about her safety, she couldn’t help it. She had to make sure that everything was fine.  
  
After two whole weeks of anxiety, Eliza was waiting outside a classroom for Maria. In five minutes, the bell would ring, inviting the students to leave the place. The girl couldn’t help but have this painful knock in her stomach ; she didn’t know if it was the idea of conversing with her friend about James, or just talking to her in general. She felt like she was being intrusive of her personal space, but who wouldn’t do the same after this scene at the café ?  
  
As she started to play with a lock of hair, the bell rang in the corridor (after what felt an eternity to her), and most of the students left their classes. She politely greeted some of them and took a look in the doorway ; Maria was still packing her stuff in her bag. Eliza noticed, under her left sleeve, a bandage covering her wrist- she couldn’t see where it ended, though.  
Maria exchanged two words with the teacher and finally left the classroom without noticing Eliza leaning against the wall. However, she stopped walking and tilted her head at the sound of someone clearing their throat behind her- and what a surprise when she met Eliza's eyes !  
  
«Elizabeth ?»  
  
«Um, hi.» The young Schuyler awkwardly scratched the back of her head for a second. «Can we, like, talk for a while ? This is very serious.»  
  
Maria frowned and shook her head. «I know- I know what you’re going to say. It's about James, isn’t it ?»  
  
Eliza quietly swallowed. «Try to understand me, he showed himself out of nowhere, almost insulted my sister and dragged you outside, even if you seemed like you didn't want to. He- I- I don’t know what to think about him. I know you said he was trustworthy, but I hardly believe you !»  
  
Maria seemed taken aback by her words and made a step back, like she felt threatened. She hugged herself by reflex, rubbing her own arms. She didn't even find the courage to look into her friend's eyes, but Eliza didn't miss to notice the heavy bags under them. Did she sleep well for the past few days ?  
  
«Why do you care so much anyway ?» She asked, chewing her inner cheek.  
  
«Because you're my friend,» Eliza thought about hugging her for a moment, but realized it would’ve been a bad idea. «and even if you don’t wanna talk, I’m here to support you anytime. You know that, right ?»  
  
«No I don’t.» Maria suddenly answered, closing her eyes. «I don’t need your support nor your concern, because _everything_ is fine. There’s nothing to worry about. None of this should matter to you.» She started to walk in the other direction. «Now do me a favor, and mind your own business. James and I are happy together.»  
  
And Eliza had been left alone in the corridor again, unable to move to follow her, or to use her voice to draw her attention. Her brain was just processing what she said, repeating her last words over and over until it just echoed in her head. « _What the hell just happened ?_ » was all she was able to mumble.  
  
She really needed to do something, and quick.

* * *

 

  
For the next days, Eliza tried to find informations about Maria's situation. She just met her this year, but she was pretty sure that some other students knew her before. Obviously her friends who was at the table of the café didn't know anything (even though she thought Alexander was still hiding something), but she asked John, Samuel, Adrienne, Theodosia even Washington. Her friends knew nothing ; however, the teacher did. Well, it wasn't that important, but now, she knew James worked in a store as a cashier.  
Eliza slapped her forehead and groaned. What could she possibly do with this ? He's working, and what else ? At least Maria could be safe for a while here, far away from her lover.  
  
As she took a sip of her coffee, she spotted Charles Lee at the other side of the cafeteria, reading something on his cellphone. His cheek was pressed against the palm of his other hand as he bit his bottom lip and frowned.  
An idea suddenly formed into her mind ; Lee knew everything about everyone in school, and spread all of those gossips whenever he could- especially the story with her ex-boyfriend. She didn't understand why Lafayette hated him that much, though ; they practically did the same thing since the French couldn't keep their mouth shut. Telling them a secret was basically the equivalent of admitting a murder to a cop.  
  
Grabbing her bag and finishing her cup of coffee, she moved to the table where Charles was sitting. He barely looked up when her frame blocked his sight.  
  
«Hey Charles.»  
  
«What do you want ?» He coldly asked without giving her a glance.  
  
«Wow, you don't need to be so rude. What did I do to you ?»  
  
«Let me see,» Lee pretended to think for a second, tapping his chin with his finger, «you hate me, your sister hates me, your friends hate me, and when you come to me, it's always to ask me to do something for you. So I'm making things shorter for both of us.»  
  
Eliza hummed as she played with the bottom of her skirt. «You seem to be in a bad mood. Is that because of Sammy ?»  
  
Charles nearly chocked himself. «What ? How do you- shit, I don't wanna know, and that's none of your business anyway. Just tell me what you want, okay ?»  
  
Eliza sighed but nodded and took a seat in front of her friend. He reluctantly turned off his phone that he put on the table.  
  
«So,» she began, rubbing her own arm, «you know Maria Lewis, right ?»  
  
«You bet I know her, Hamilton cheated on you with her. Everybody knows that by now.»  
  
«That's not what I meant,» she groaned, rolling her eyes, «do you know her as a person ? Like, did you talk to her, or hang out with her one day ?»  
  
He quickly scratched his head, probably reviewing all of his memories from the last months. When he looked back at Eliza, he simply shrugged.  
  
«Nah, sorry. I don't even think she knows who I am. But,» Eliza's eyes lightened up, «some students say that her boyfriend is violent with her, mostly because of the bruises she has on her body.»  
  
«The... The bruises ?»  
  
« Hm, yeah, that's what I said. That's maybe why she wears long skirts and all that stuff, you see ?» Lee noticed the worried expression the Schuyler sister wore and frowned. «Don't take this too seriously though, those are just gossips. And you know how gossips work, they spread like wildfire, and they're usually not even true.»  
  
«Yes... I know. Thanks for telling me anyway.»  
  
She took her bag and left the table without telling him goodbye, too lost in her own thoughts for that.  
Maybe James really was that violent, cold man with her girlfriend. That explained his behavior at the café, that explained why Maria seemed so cold and distant with her, that explained the bandage on her wrist. That explained too much things.  
  
For once she prayed, hoping that she was just being paranoid, that what happened was just a bunch of coincidences, and that Maria actually was happy and safe with him. She was willing to stop talking to her, if her boyfriend was just jealous. But a part of her mind already knew the truth she hardly accepted.

* * *

  
Eliza was finally home after a day that seemed way too long for her. Peggy and Angelica were already here and greeted her when they noticed the tired look in her eyes- she didn't even have to speak for that. So the three of them sneaked onto the couch to watch a cartoon the youngest of them chose with several snacks and blankets she brought right after.  
Angelica wasn't a big fan of cartoons, but she was willing to bear it since her sisters loved them -she herself had a guilty pleasure which was sitcoms, how could she blame them ? And this one didn't seem _that_ bad, even though the main character was unbearable.  
  
«Oh man, I can't believe I didn't watch it before.» Eliza smiled, humming the theme song along the four voices.  
  
Peggy nodded in agreement as she stuffed chocolate in her mouth. «You seriously missed something, but I'm here to fix the most terrible mistake of your life.»  
  
«I don't know girl,» Angelica sighed, «Garnet is cool and all, but this kid ? Nah. Cancelled. He's a dumbass.»  
  
«Be nice with my son, he's literally twelve years old ! You weren't better at twelve, Angie.»  
  
«At least I knew how to read at that age.»  
  
Peggy playfully rolled her eyes and got back to the TV screen where the protagonist was arguing with one of her mothers for some reason. Eliza took a look at the time on her phone- almost eight pm. They've been watching this cartoon for two hours straight now. She also noticed the rain violently pouring against the windows as the thunder roared in the sky, muffled by the characters' yellings and the sound effects. She remembered how grey the sky was on her way back home.  
  
«Just listen to the brainless kid for once, you lesbian disasters !» Angelica grumbled, making wide gestures with her hands. «He definitely saw the round things !»  
  
«See ? You kinda like this cartoon, after all.» Eliza chuckled.  
  
«Yeah, whatever.»  
  
Peggy winked at Eliza and drew her attention to the screen one more time. But suddenly, the front door's bell rang, interrupting the current episode playing.  
  
«Did you guys were waiting for someone tonight ?» Angelica asked, one eyebrow cocked.  
  
«Nope, Laffy and Sammy were busy.»  
  
«I didn't invite anyone either.» The bell rang a second time as Eliza sighed. «Yes, I'm coming !»  
  
Eliza stood up from the couch and prepared herself to put on a fake smile to greet the stranger just to chase them away better. She had a moment with her sisters, after all, and no one was going to interrupt that !  
She approached the front door, turned the knob and open it, as the corners of her mouth quickly stopped twitching and her eyes widened.  
  
Maria was there, her clothes and hair soaked with rain.  
  
They just looked at each other for a second, Eliza shocked and Maria ashamed, until the impromptu guest cleared her throat. «Um... s-sorry to bother you, Elizabeth. I... I...»  
  
But she never finished her sentence and just burst into tears in front of the other girl, her face buried into her hands.  
Eliza was honestly lost and speechless ; Maria had been so distant with her and she honestly felt rejected by her behavior, but her own feelings weren't important right now. Her priority was her friend, crying all she could cry on her doorstep. Something must've happened to her.  
  
«There, there,» Eliza finally whispered as she took her hand, «come inside. We'll take care of you, okay ?»  
  
Maria just nodded, still sobbing, and shyly entered the house, not leaving the grip she had on her friend's hand. Her wet steps left traces on the carpet behind her until they arrived to the livingroom.  
  
«Yo Liz, who was at-» Peggy stopped herself at the sight of the young woman behind her sister. «Wow, what the f-»  
  
«Peggy, language.»  
  
Peggy just hissed at Angelica and stood up from the couch. Maria, as a reflex, grabbed Eliza's arm and hid more behind her.  
  
«I'm s-so sorry ! I-I didn't m-mean to bother you... I...» Maria had struggles to talk between her loud sobs and just wiped her face with the back of her hand.  
  
Angelica took a long breath. «Peggy, go make some tea for her. I'm gonna grab a towel.»  
  
Before Eliza or Maria could even react, the two of them disappeared into the kitchen and upstairs to perform their job ; then, they just sat onto the couch where the blankets had been left and waited for them to come back. Maria basically curled into a ball as her friend tried to comfort her. Well, she didn't even know the reason of her visit (even though she was convinced it was about her shitty boyfriend), so she wasn't sure of the right words to pick. She just hugged her when she felt comfortable enough to be touched.  
Soon, Peggy came back with a hot cup of tea which she gave to her guest, and Angelica drapped a dry towel around her shaking shoulders. She carefully took a sip of her drink, sighing at the feeling of Eliza's arms around her.  
  
«Are you feeling better ?» Peggy asked, her voice laced with concern.  
  
«I don't know, but... thanks for all of this.»  
  
«Maria ?» Angelica called as she started playing with her fingers. «I don't want to put pressure on you, but I really want to know why you came here. Especially after the behavior you had with my sister.»  
  
«Angie !» Peggy suddenly shouted. «She's still a guest, be kind with her !»  
  
«No... No. Angelica is right.»  
  
Maria put the cup onto the coffee table once she finished it and grabbed one of the corner of the towel which she twitched between her fingers. The sisters just exchanged some looks at the awkward silence.  
  
«I know I made you worry, Elizabeth. I'm really sorry about that, it wasn't fair for you, but- but I had my reasons.» She suddenly looked down as her voice became barely audible. «You were right... about James.»  
  
Another silence reigned into the room.  
  
Eliza knew it. She knew Maria was in trouble with her boyfriend, she knew she was hiding something, but a part of her couldn't accept the truth she's been hoping to hear for days. She just couldn't accept it. How someone could harm her in any way ? She was an angel !  
Seeing that nobody didn't have to add anything, she kept going.  
  
«James left the house today, saying that he was outside the town for the week. I... I really need your help. Is it too much if I tell you about my current situation ?»  
  
«Of course not !» Peggy quickly answered- tremor were audible in her voice. «I-I mean, if my sisters don't mind.»  
  
Angelica and Eliza simply nodded, and Maria weakly smiled for a moment before clearing her throat. They turned off the TV and took place ; Maria and Eliza stayed on the couch, and Peggy and her elder sat on the other one, facing the two girls.  
  
**_[TW toxic relationship]_**  
  
«Well,» Maria took a deep breath, «we started to date each almost a year ago. James always have been a good friend at first, always supportive of my choices, and being here when I was feeling down... I'm someone really anxious, but I knew I could count on him, so we became lovers pretty quickly and moved in the same house together. Why would I even hesitate about that decision ? He was so... dedicated to me.» She marked a pause, looking at her fingers playing with a crease of her skirt. «I was happy with him. He brought me flowers whenever he could, we went outside to eat, like any other couple... at least for the first weeks.»  
  
Eliza noticed how hard Maria tried not to cry again ; she softly rubbed her hand as a support.  
  
«You don't have to continue if it's too much for you.»  
  
«No, no, it's- _I'm_ okay. I need to talk about this to someone.» She gave Eliza's hand a light squeeze. «James started to tell me hurtful things. It was on my appearance, on my clothes, on my behavior, even on the friends I made... basically everything. He said he was doing this for me, that he knew what I needed. So I thought « _Okay, maybe it's for my own good and that I should listen to what he says, even if it feels harmful at first. That's what any other girlfriend would do._ » I was just... so in love with him, I needed him so bad that I barely questionned this.»  
  
«I-I know it's not a good moment to interrupt you, but do you want more tea ? It could help you to relax.» Peggy proposed.  
  
«I'd love to... Thank you, Peggy.»  
  
Eliza sadly watched her younger sister leaving the room with the empty cup, her hands shaking and clenching around it as hard as she could. She knew she was trying to avoid this conversation- not that listening to Maria was bothering her, but listening to the awful things she lived with her boyfriend just triggered her to a point she couldn't hear more without bursting into tears.  
  
«Then he isolated me, saying that my friends were jealous of our relationship, that I didn't need them- that I just needed him. I wasn't the one to go outside a lot anyway, but I just... stopped talking to them when he convinced me they were all toxic to us.»  
  
«Is that why you avoided me after our meeting at the café ?» Maria simply nodded. «I'm so sorry... I had no idea.»  
  
«It's okay... It was my fault. I should've talked about it sooner or just run away from him.»  
  
«No it's not.» Angelica quickly contradicted. «It'll never be your fault, the only guilty is James. Don't you dare think you have any part of responsibility in that.» She quietly sighed, trying to relax a bit. «Sorry, please continue.»  
  
«I...» The corners of her mouth twitched for a second before she came back to her story, losing the ghost of her smile. «Soon, I felt horrible about myself, even more than before. James kept saying that I was too fat, that I didn't take care of myself, that I was making him suffering on purpose, things like that. It went for months and months, and I didn't try to deny. I just complied as best as I could, but I was never good enough for him.» Peggy finally came back from the kitchen, handing the cup of tea to the guest who thanked her. «Then here we are, one or two months ago when I cheated on him with Alexander. I was making up lies and excuses to go outside to meet him, but one day he looked through my phone and discovered the texts we sent to each other. He was waiting for me to talk this evening, but things went wrong so quickly. That was the first time...»  
  
Maria put a hand against her mouth by reflex, but slowly pulled it off as she sighed.  
  
«That was the first time he physically hurt me.»  
  
Everyone went silent in the room, not knowing what to answer to this. This sentence was like a punch in the guts for the one who heard it for the first time, so Eliza could barely imagine what it felt to go through humiliations and hits all day.  
Maria's eyes widened when she saw a tear rolling down Peggy's cheek and felt a rush of panic through her body as she left her empty cup of tea on the coffee table.  
  
«I'm- I'm so sorry Peggy ! I- You- I didn't mean to-»  
  
«No, no, it's fine !» She quickly wiped the tear and forced a smile. «I'm not as tough as I expected, that's all. Keep talking all you want.»  
  
Maria seemed reluctant but finally nodded. «I don't think I need to elaborate though, but I'm terrified to come back from school and see him. I thought about breaking up, obviously, but I'm so afraid he'd hurt me more. It took me hours to leave my house even though he wasn't there. I... I just couldn't take it anymore, and you said you were there for me, Elizabeth.» Noticing the calm in the livingroom, Maria shook her head. «Now I definitely am talking too much, huh ?»  
  
**_[End of the TW]_**  
  
«No, don't say that. You have all the rights to share that with us.» Eliza gently rubbed her back. «Do you want to stay here for the night ?»  
  
«We can provide you with dry clothes, and we have a room for you.» Angelica added, nodding.  
  
«Just for the night, then... I don't wanna bother you.»  
  
«You'll never be a burden, Maria. We'll find a solution to save you from this mess. Hey, Peg, can you show her the way to her room ?»  
  
Peggy took a questioning glance to her elder but just nodded, standing up from the couch. She invited Maria to come upstairs, which she did, thanking the sisters one last time- she hugged Eliza as tight as she could before, offering her the most grateful smile the young Schuyler had ever seen in her life. Once the two of them disappeared, Angelica let out a long sigh.  
  
«Are you okay ?» Eliza asked, concerned.  
  
«That's something you should ask to Maria. I just...» She hugged herself. «Nah, forget. That's selfish.»  
  
«Angie, I'm sure it's not. Please, tell me what's on your mind, you know I would never judge you !»  
  
«I...» Angelica ran a hand through her hair and groaned in frustration. She didn't seem to find the words to describe exactly what she wanted, but finally, something came out of her mouth. «How could I possibly miss all of this !?»  
  
«What ?»  
  
«Everything she bore ! I mean... I'm supposed to see this kind of things, right ? I'm supposed to be the one helping the others, and giving them advices, and- and I'm so speechless right now ! I don't know what to do to help her, but that's usually what I do the best !»  
  
«Hey, calm down !» Eliza leaned forward and put her hand on hers. «You don't have a role or anything here, and you couldn't have known what Maria was going through. You're our sister, you're our friend, not our therapist.»  
  
«But I...» She looked down for a moment. «If I can't see your struggles, what am I supposed to do ?»  
  
«That's true, you didn't see that one coming... so neither of us did. Nobody could have known, but we can all help Maria anyway. Please, be indulgent with yourself.»  
  
«If you say so...»  
  
«I do. Stop thinking about this, yeah ?» She couldn't help but smile when she heard her sister' snort. «What was that for ?»  
  
«I'm usually the one telling you this kind of stuff. « _Don't worry about it, stop otherthinking..._ » That's kinda funny.» She stood up as well from her seat and started making her way upstairs. «I'm going to sleep. Wake me up if you need anything.»  
  
«Alright, goodnight.» She nodded, making a mental note to wake Peggy up instead. She stayed on the couch, wrapping herself with one of the blanket they forgot to pick up.  
Despite her words, Eliza was scared for Maria. She didn't know what to do to drag her from this situation. Was she supposed to confront James ? No way, it would be dangerous for Maria. Maybe she had to call the cops ? No, bad idea, cops would be useless in that case- well, more than usual. She heard about phone numbers for people who were beaten up by their partners... She'll have to find more informations about this.  
She never realized domestic violences and toxic relationships were such an issue since she never experienced it or even saw it... until today. She guessed she was too naive, even a bit stupid to think it was something you only saw in movies.  
  
She slowly closed her eyes as those thoughts consumed her. It wasn't important anyway ; the priority for now was Maria, not her.


End file.
